Most of us eat every day, some of us too much because yesterday's food
is not enough to supply energy for today's needs. Why then, do some
of us expect yesterday's portion of heavenly manna, the word of God to keep
us through today's challenges. On this program, we are going to change all
of that. Let's experience God's words today and receive the power we need to
live healthy, vibrant lives. Welcome to Your Daily Portion with your host,
author speaker, Elle David Harris. Good morning, Good morning, Good morning.
It is Tuesday, July twenty three, twenty twenty four. Hello,
my name is Elle David Harris. I am your host, and this is
your Daily Portion where we give you God's word every single day, and today
is no exception. We are continuing in our Lesson study series through the Book
of Mark, and our caption for today is the Reason for the Parables,
The reason for the Parables. We'll get into that in just a moment,
but first I like to say welcome to you and ask you to please go
over to your Daily Portion dot com. Please join our online community, pick
up the Your Daily Portion book and let us know where you are in the
world. At your Daily Portion dot com. This is a way that we
continue to build faith and fellowship. Let's go ahead and pray, and then
we will get underway. Father, thank you for this morning, for the
opportunity to listen and do according to your word. Father, Please give us
your holy spirit. Help us not to make this just an intellectual or academic
exercise, but help us to live live according to your word. In Jesus'
name, I pray, Amen and amen again. The reason for the parables?
Okay, and so why would Jesus invest his precious time to deliver parables?
Yeah, type it in a chat, like, why would Jesus in
his precious time to deliver these parables? Because really and truly, Jesus only
had a little bit of time on planet Earth. We're not talking about Jesus
as the one who is in heaven, the one who is in his pre
incarnate state, meaning before he took on a body and delivering words in scrolls
or on parchment. Like, it's not that he has three and a half
years of public ministry and he has to make it matter. Why would he
invest his precious time to deliver parables? Well, let's just continue thinking about
this from the book of Mark, chapter four, verse ten. The Bible
reads, when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him
about the parables. Verse eleven. He said to them, the secret of
the Kingdom of God has been given to you. So God is saying,
Jesus is saying in this case that I've given you the secrets. All of
the mysteries that are for humans are for our learning. Remember that for your
learning. Remember that passage. So the secrets of God that are for our
learning, he gives those to us, the secrets to the kingdom of the
kingdom, He's given those to them. But to those outside, everything is
in parables. I tap danced around this the other day, and I know
some people were a little bit confused. But now we're gonna sit right here.
And so sometimes we make it that these parables, which are incredible,
and even in the book Christ's object Lessons, they all have several of the
parables put together from E. G. White's writings, and this is appropriate.
But sometimes we make it seem as if the intent was for God to
speak the parables to people who are fully receptive to God's will, sort of
like the perfect ground, the good ground hearers, and it was like a
spiritual lesson study, and it is a spiritual lesson study. But hear what
Jesus is saying. He said, I'm gonna give this stuff to you directly.
But those who are not my people, those who are not receptive at
this point, those on the outside, everything is imparable, so that although
they look, they may not see. Although they hear, they may hear
but not understand, so they may not repent and be forgiven. And so
Jesus is saying very simply that if you have ears to hear, then you
will hear. Well, how do we get ears to hear? Jesus as
the one who now we are submitted to, gives us full understanding, and
they are no longer parables. The symbols go away. They give way to
the truth that God intended to teach. In fact, I wasn't planning on
doing this, but I want to go to the Bible Book of Revelation because
I think we can make even more sense out of it if we go to
the Bible Book of Revelation. It reads here, beginning at verse one,
the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him. So we see
that God gave revelation through Christ to show unto whom his servants things which must
shortly come to pass. Let me just say this to you. If you
feel like the prophecies of Revelation the prophecies of Daniel are impossible to understand or
too difficult, why does it have to be so difficult, then what you
brothers and sisters need to do is check your servanthood. If the parables are
difficult to understand, or you're one what in the world is this? And
you're saying, God, I need you to speak to me plainly, but
you're not getting him hearing him plainly, then that means you or I we
have to check our servanthood, because it says that He is showing it to
his servants which things must shortly come to pass, and signify it by his
Angel unto his servant John, who bear record of the word of God and
of the testimony of Jesus Christ, of all the things he saw. Now
there are three blessings here. I want you to get these blessings. Blessed
is he that readeth, and they that hear of this prophecy, and keep
the things which are written therein, for the time is at hand. So
Jesus in this revelation is saying that you're blessed when you read, you're blessed
when you hear, blessed when you keep the words that are written in this
book speaking of revelation, because the time is at hand. So in the
Book of Daniel we see in chapter twelve and verse four he says that the
vision was to be sealed up. The vision was to be sealed up.
But here the revelation is opening. That's why it's called revelation, like to
reveal, like that's he's opening it up to our understanding. Who's understanding,
servants of the Living God, Blessed be his name. Oh, and then
there are blessings. And so what God is telling us is the way in
the way to receive understanding in clarity and not in parables, is if we
become his servants. Let me read it back from the Book of Mark,
because I think we need a re education, a reprogramming here, because so
many people have missed this point. When he was alone those around him with
the twelve acts about the parables, what are you to talking about? Jesus?
He said to them, the secret of the Kingdom of God has been
given to you, but to those outside, everything is in parables or proverbs
parables to them. The secret given to you. Blessed is the one that
hears. Blessed is the one that does right. Blessed are the ones that
read. Because the time is at hand. God wants us to hear him,
not just in parables. He wants us to have repentant spirits that turn
away from sin, that open up and perk up when He speaks, so
that we can be like those who are the good soil hearers. That the
word doesn't just come into our hearts and then something cause it to go right
back out, but that the word takes lodgment, as we say here in
Jamaica Land we love, it takes lodgment in our hearts and then the fruit
comes from it. So the parables h really aren't what we thought they were.
Maybe somebody mistrained us. So God is teaching us that we can hear
from him plainly, okay. And so God wants to reveal the truth to
those who open, who are open to receive it. That's one of the
reasons to fulfill prophecy. That's another one of the reasons to challenge listeners to
think and reflect and to repent. That's another reason to protect spiritual truths from
being seen as unimportant. Only those who are willing to yield our will to
God will understand these things in the fullness. Why because those secrets of the
kingdom are only revealed to God's servants. The others, it'll be parallelus.
Thanks for joining us listening. Friends. Always remember we cannot live by bread
alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. This
has been your daily portion with el David Harris, Make it a great day. Yeah,